Storm damage could top $60 million in Monterey County

UPDATE 4/25/2017 6 p.m.:

Monterey County is facing nearly $60 million dollars in storm related damaged. The news comes as the Board of Supervisors approved the 2017 Storm Response Implementation Plan on Tuesday. It’s a blueprint of what areas need to be repaired now, versus the ones that can wait till the summertime.

“We take into account things like amount of traffic that’s in the roads,” said Dr. Mohammad Qureshi, a traffic engineer at Monterey County. “The damage, the importance to the overall regional and local areas so we are prioritizing the locations that need it the most.”

Debris removal and measures to prevent further damage topped the list. Following that, repairs on Palo Colorado Road, where there have been nearly a dozen areas of concern identified. So far crews have only done work from Highway 1 to the Rocky Creek area.

“The mudflow came down, plugged up the culvert and the water diverted and created a new crossing across the road,” Qureshi said. “We put in a temporary bridge and the February storms came and tore up the road to pieces. We’ve reclaimed a lot of it and remade it accessible up to that spot.”

Fixing the road from that point on could cost anywhere $12-$15 million. The Boy Scouts camp, past Bottcher’s Gap, is in big trouble.

“The key concern is that the existing damage is serious but manageable,” said Mark Ellis, a volunteer with Boy Scouts of America. “If we are put at the bottom of the list to repair the upper part of the road, we face multiple years without access and with 38 buildings, 3 and a half miles of road and infrastructure throughout, we face serious damage which may be irreparable for some time.”

But he understands it could take several years for the repair work to be completed, but he’d like maintenance access so additional damage can be prevented.

Other areas of concern are Elkhorn Road and Cachagua Road, where slides have made travel difficult. But progress on both projects are slowly being made.

The plan also addressed sinkholes throughout the county, including on Boronda, San Miguel Canyon, Corral de Tierra. County parks also have problems like downed trees and building damages.

The work that’s not done by June will be carried over to the next fiscal year. Supervisor Luis Alejo said the county is working very hard to get reimbursed by the state for some of the damages.

ORIGINAL POST:

The 2016-2017 winter has caused an estimated $60 million in damage throughout the county.The Monterey County Supervisors approved the 2017 Storm Response plan during Tuesday’s meeting.

The Resource Management Agency drafted a list of projects to address critical damages. According to an item in the Board of Supervisors agenda, there are two lists of prioritized projects, separated by what can be done this fiscal year and next fiscal year.

Some of the projects between now and June 30 include:

– Debris removal and other emergency measures

– Palo Colorado slope erosion repair and pipe replacement at Rocky Creek

– Elkhorn Road repair and restoration

– Cachagua Road repair

– Pavement patching and repair sinkholes